Tuesday, August 8, 2017

Despite the title of this post, I did feel inspired to go out in the backyard after work today and shoot this photo of my outfit, a three-tiered confection in black and grey, which seems to be my favourite colour combo for the summer. And according to Instagram, it's Tongue-Out Tuesday. So there we are. You're welcome.

On to the Meaningful Stuff:

I started this blog 8 years ago, and I don't want to think about how many hours I've spent taking photos, editing photos, and writing posts. I didn't create the blog in order to make money, or to make a name for myself, but as a creative outlet for my writing and photography, and I think that in that way, it has been a success. My blog persona of Forest City Fashionista has become known in the city where I live, and in a few others I've visited, and I am still delighted when someone approaches me on the street or in the grocery store to tell me that they enjoy my blog. However, as the months pass, I find fewer and fewer things to write about. The same lovely people comment on every post, but overall, the traffic to my blog has slowed considerably, as has the traffic to the Facebook page for my blog. With FB, it's a catch 22; if you don't post often, no one sees your posts. I have jumped ship to Instagram (@fcfashionista), where I do post regularly. Fortunately, many of my blogging friends also hang out in IG land, so we are able to catch up there. An Instagram post is more of a "wave and hello" instead of the "let's sit down and have a chat" feeling of a blog post, but it's all I'm inspired to do right now.

My friend Suzanne recently wrote an interesting post about the lure of Social Media for her blog, and I admire her for having kept at it for 11 years and is still producing well-written, entertaining posts.

This summer has been pretty quiet - I've been more interested in
spending time with friends, reading loads of books, and trying my hand at some crafting instead of thinking about what to post on my blog. I'm enjoying the freedom
that comes with not having to photograph everything I do (aside from a photo for my Instagram) and try to shape it into an
entertaining or meaningful story. I want to do, make, and see more things, and
maybe I'll still write about them, but I don't want to feel I have
to for the sake of keeping my blog going. There will still be some outfit posts for those of you who enjoy seeing what I put together, and as I have a collaborative relationship with Talize Thrift Stores, I will continue to feature some of the cool things I've found there.

All that being said, here are some photos of what I've been up to.....

Sylvester Update:

I have grown so attached to this guy over the summer. He has proven to be an all-round wonderful companion - affectionate, chatty, non-destructive, and he loves weekend naps and belly rubs.

Apparently I suck at remembering to take "before" photos, so you'll have to believe me when I tell you that this plaster and metal thingy was all white when I found it in a neighbourhood thrift store, and it only took me two years to finally buy some paint and brushes, and turn it into the now-brightly -coloured thingy that is hanging on my front door. This is what happens when you take a week off work and don't go away (as is my habit). You find yourself doing things like listening to podcasts, sewing on buttons, and painting decorative thingies for your front door. I was so proud of myself when I finally finished this!

I found this short-sleeved hooded sweatshirt at Talize, and although I really like the shirt, I wasn't crazy about the raised letters on the front that spelled out "Some Day". At my age, I want to do more things today, or tomorrow, or next week, or even next year, but not "Some Day". So I had to fix it with some fabric paint. I'm not sure how I feel about the result, as the words are no longer centered on the shirt, but that may be the perfectionist in me rearing her ugly head.

And Speaking of my Head...

I discovered that I like the look of a subtle teal blue in my hair, which apparently is now officially a Mohawk (albeit a soft one), according to a number of guys who have recently commented on it.

Yes, that is a tiny photo of actor Steve Buscemi on my ear. They are earrings made by the Foxy Hipster (check out her Etsy site here)that I found at a cool shop in Stratford called Meet Your Maker. I also have a pair with David Bowie's face.

I Wore Stuff...

Oh look - Colour! The top with the attached pieces of silk and the big linen pants are two retail pieces that I treated myself to from Cora Couture in Stratford on one of my visits to see my mother (her move to Stratford is costing me a lot of money). I found the sparkly "winking eye" shoes at Winners and I'll be wearing them a lot when the weather is cooler. Apparently no one else thought they were cool as the store closest to me now has at least 4 pairs in the clearance section.

Seriously, how are these not the coolest shoes? And they are now marked down to $25

I'm pretty sure the neighbours weren't home from work when I was shooting this. They already think I'm weird.